Oil separator



G M. WALTON OIL SEPARATOR Filed March 25, 1945 2 Sheets-Shet 1 INVENTOR YGEORGE M. WALTON ATTORNEYS Dec. 18, 1945. G. M. WALT-ON OIL SEPARATOR 2 Shets-Sheet 2 Filed March 25, 1945 ATTORNEYS.

Patented Dec. 18, 1945 OIL SEPARATOR George nwaimn. Shaker HeightaOhio, assignmto Air-Maze Corporation, Cleveland, Ohio, 2 corporation of Delaware Application March 25, 1943, Serial No. 180,442

-"-Th'is invention relates to improvements inoil separatorsfor removing .oil globules in vapor irom crankcase fluids and the like.

On of the objects of the present invention is to separateoil entrained in fluidremoved from acasing either in globule form or in a line mist, couplediif desired, withmeans for returning the recovered oil back to the casing whence it came. Among the objects 01' thepresent invention is that of carrying out this oilremovingoperation if th casing assumes various positions-for .instance, if it is a. casing connected with an airplane engine which at times may fly upside down; 1 e v I Gtherobiects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent irom the accompanyihg' drawings and specification and the essential featuresthereoi will be set forth in the claims. Inthe drawings, Fig. 1 is a sectional view through one form of my device shown in its normal position right side up; -Fig. 2 is a sectional view or the same taken along the line 2:4- og I-ig; 1;. Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fi 1' showing the action of the device in an upside down position; while Fig, 4 is a sectional view through a modified form of device shown in a position similar to that of Fig.- 1.

' It isoften desirable in the case of airplanes to remove the vapors from the crankcase of the engine so that they do not escape to coat portions of theplane with oil to cause a fire hazard or so that they do not .coat Windshields or other windows to'obstruct the view. In any case, a,

of the engine might result in loweringthe oil supply to the danger point. The present inven tion therefore is directed to the recovery of oil vapors from the casing of the engine and the return of those'oils so that the above described purposes may be accomplished.

In the drawings in represents the casing of an engineer the like which in some cases may be the crankcase itself, or it may be an extension thereof in front of or in rear of the engine proper. In any case, 10 represents a reservoir partly filled with oil to the level II, as indicated in Fig. 1, when the engine or other device is in its: normal position. The chamber l2 above'the oil. level will' normally contain some oil in globule or vapor form and in order to prevent its escape a'slight vacuum is created in the casing Hiby means, not shown, connected to the outlet openingor. pipe 13;. This may be connected to the suction manifold of 'an internal combustion engine or to another pump if desired.

. [Suitably connected to the casing in is a housing M which has an opening I communicating with the upper portion of the casing and an being shown in my Patent No. 2,230,2 78, issued February 4,1941. As shown in Figs. l and 3, the oil separator element comprises a cylindrical unit built up or several layers of screen having the finer screen radially outermost and the coars-' est screen radially innermost. The bottom of the "cylinder is substantially closed by means of the head I!) and the top of the cylinder is closed around the outer portion by'a head 20 which is provided with the-"central" opening 20a for exit of the fluid stream upwardly to the pipe [3. The arrangement of the housing and the head l9 and associated parts is such that all fluid leaving the casing in either by way of the outlet I5or the outlet I1 is compelled to pass through the The action of the pluralit of screens in the element [8 is such that the oil mist or small globules coalesce as they pass towards the radially innermost screen and "then drain downwardly to pass along'the head 19 toward the center where Associated with theopening I5 is a valve the collected oil escari'es back to 'the casing iii. A novel arrangement is provided at this point for carrying out this purpose. 2| for the purpose presently to be disclosed. Ri idly connected with this valve is 'a' stem 22 extending'upwardly through suitable bearings 23 and 2401 the housing l4. These bearings are part 01 amp 25 which is centrally supported by .radially extending rib's'26. The upper end "of stein 22 is'hollow,as 'indicated-at'ZZa. At its turn to the casing l0 through a U-sealof the V manometer type, so that'the collected oil from the-upper surface or'head i9 is returned 'tocasingilll while sealing the casing against the suctiontexerted at pipe I8. In other words; the hollow portion 22a 0! the stem provides the longer leg of the manometer, and the cup 25 between the openings 22b and 25a provides the shorter leg of the manometer.

Obviously, if the oil level I I is below the open ing Ila, fluid will be sucked out of the casing Ill through the tube I! and through opening 16, but this will also pass through the oil separator element l8 on its way toward the outlet I3. I

As best seen in Fig. 3, the device provides against loss of'oil from the casing I if the plane or other device is upside down, so that the oil A now lies in what was formerly the top of the casing 10. It will be noted that the valve 2i has now closed against the coacting seat iormedin the opening l5 by the action of gravity. Thiseffectually closes the opening I 5 but leaves the opening Na in the clear space above the oil level Ila so that the suction outlet l3 mayjstill maintain a partial vacuum in the casing Hi to prevent the escape of oil vapors. These vapors now passing through the tube I 1 and opening l6 must-pass through the oil separating element It! as before, collecting the oil globules and mist on the screens or other collecting means. The collected oil will drain down into the slight cup formed by the head 20 and the lip 20a. Ordinarily the plane is upside down for a relatively short period so that there is only a small amount of oil to be thuscollected. When the plane rights itself. the parts return to the position of Fig. 1. the collected oil drops down to the head I9 and flows away through the openin 22a through the seal to the casin ID. as reviously described.

In the modified form shown in Fig. 4, the easing in and tube I! are arranged as before and-suction is applied at the outlet opening 21. In this case the housings 28 and 29 combine to enclose the o l separator element l8 which is similar to the element l 8 previously described. The normal outlet opening for fluid escaping from the casing I0 to the connection 21 is indicated at 30 and is closable by the valve 3| when the plane is in upside down position. -It will be noted that the opening 30 is not at the very top of the casing I0, but is near enough the top to be above the normal level of oil in the casing H). The valve stem 3la is provided with an oil seal indicated generally at 32 which functions in all respects like that already described in connection with Fig. 1.

ing Ill without subjecting the casing to suction through the oil returning seal. 7

When the device of Fig. 4 is turned upside down. the valve 3| closes against the seat in opening 30, effectually preventing loss of oil or further fluid suction through opening 30 while the parts are in the upside down position. In this case the suction from the connection 21 is exerted through passageway 33 u on the tube l1 and draws fluid and oil vapors from the casing I 0 through the opening Ila exactly as shown and described in Fig. 3. In this case the oil vapors are not collected on the element l8 but instead a small oil separator element 34 is inserted at the opening Hi. This oil separating unit 34 may be of any suitable type. In fact, it may be constructed upon the same principle as referred to in my prior patent mentioned above, comprising a plurality of screens arranged in layers with the coarsest screen in the lowermost position and the finest screen in the uppermost position, as viewed in Fig. 4. Oil globules will then be coalesced and held by the screens of the element 34 while the plane is in the upside down position and intact,

It normally returns the oil from the in-. terior of the oil separating element l8 to the cas-.

a small amount of oil may collect along the walls of the passageway 33. Since the plane is upside down for a very short period, as soon as the plane returns to normal position and the parts return to the position shown in Fig. 4, the oil in the passageway 33 and on the screens 34 will flow down the tube l1 and return to the general body of oil A in the casing l0.

What I claim is: I

1. In combination, casing means for containing liquid and having an outlet opening above the normal level of liquid therein, an outlet conduit by means of which a fluid flow outwardly from said casing means may be conducted, a liquid separating unit providing a maze of interstices between said opening and said conduit, housing means compelling all fluid passing from said opening to saidconduit to pass through said unit, valve means adapted to close said opening, said valve means being closable in response to a predetermined change of position of said casing means, and an outlet passageway leading from said casing to said outlet conduit, said passageway terminating above the level of liquid in said casing means when the latter is in its predetermined changed position and said outlet passage.- way leading through said liquid separating unit.

' 2. In combination, casing means adapted to be partly filled with a liquid, two fluid outlet passageways communicating with said casing means, the

' first of said passageways communicating theresaid liquid to said casing means while closing said casing means against gas flow through said liquidreturning means, and means in said second passageway for collecting entrained liquid while permitting gas flow when said casing means is upside down.

3. In combination, casing means adapted to be partly filled with a liquid, 8. fluid outlet passageway communicatin with said casing means near the top thereof, a liquid separating unit in said passageway, housing means compelling fluid mov. ing through said passageway to pass through said unit, valve means associated with said unit and housing and passageway for closing the latter when said casing means is upside down, sealing means for returning liquid from said unit to said casing means when the latter is right side up, said last namedmeans comprising a manometer having a shorter leg in communication with said casing means and a longer leg in communication with said unit, and said valve having a hollow stem providing one of said legs.

4. In combination, casing means adapted to be partly filled with a liquid, two fluid outlet passageways communicating with said casing means, the first of said passageways communicating therewith near the top thereof and the second of said passageways communicating therewith nearer the bottom thereof than the first, outlet conduit means'through which a fluid flow away from said casing means may be conducted, an entrained liquid separating means providing fine interstices between both of said passageways and said outlet conduit means, valve means for closing said first passageway when said casingmeans is upside down, manometer means for returning liquid from said separating means to said casing means when the latter is right side up, said manometer means having a, shorter leg communicating with said casing means and a longer leg communicating with said separating means, and said valve means having a hollow stem communicating with said unit and providing the longer leg of said manometer means.

5. In combination, casing means adapted to be partly filled with a liquid, two fluid outlet passageways communicating with said casing means, the first of said passageways communicating therewith near the top thereof and the second of said passageways communicating therewith nearer the bottom thereof than the first, outlet conduit means through which a fluid flow away from said casing means may be conducted in both of said passageways, a liquid separating unit in said first passageway, valve means adapted to close said first passageway when said casing means is upside down and adapted to open said first passageway when said casing means is right side up, and screen means in said second passagefrom said casing means may be conducted in both of said passageways, a liquid separating unit positioned between both of said passageways and said outlet conduit means, sealing means between said casing means and said unit in said first passageway operative when said casing means is in nor- 'mal upright position for returning liquid from said unit to said casing means by gravity flow while closing said casing means against suction through said sealing means, and a cup-like depression associated with said unit in upside down position thereof for retaining liquid collected by said separating unit from a fluid stream flowing through said second passageway.

7. In combination, casing means adapted to be partly filled with a liquid, a fluid outlet passageway communicating with said casing means near the top thereof, a liquid separating unit in said passageway, housing means compelling fluid moving through said passageway to pass through said unit, valve means associated with said unit and housing and passageway for closing the latter when said casing means is upside down, sealing means for returning liquid from said unit to said casing means when the latter is right side up, and said last named means comprising a manometer having a shorter leg in communication with said casing means and a longer leg in communication with said unit.

8. In combination, casing means adapted to contain a gaseous fluid and adapted to be partly fllled with a liquid, a passageway communicating with said casing means near the top thereof, a liquid separating unit in said passageway comprising a hollow cylindrical foraminous element positioned with its axis normally substantially vertical, an outlet conduit for gaseous fluid above said element, said conduit communicating directly with the interior only of said cylindrical element, means closing the lower end of said hollow of said cylindrical element against gaseous fluid flow, whereby gases and liquids passing from said casing to said outlet conduit are compelled to pass radially inwardly through the cylindrical walls of said element and then out the top of said element generally axially thereof, a valve adapted to close the casing end of said passageway when said casing means is upside down, and a second passageway providing communication between said outlet conduit and a zone in said casing substantially below the top thereof independently .of said valve.

9. The combination of claim 8 including a foraminous element in said second passageway for separating liquid from gaseous fluid.

GEORGE M. WALTON. 

